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Springfield leaders approve deal for second water source

The Springfiled Board of Mayor and Aldermen has agreed to execute a contract to purchase water from the Logan-Todd Regional Water Commission. Once the project of placing lines into Springfield is complete, the city will be provided two million gallons of treated water daily from the Cumberland River.
(Photo:
Cheri Reeves/Robertson County Times
)

The Springfield Board of Mayor and Aldermen approved a contract Tuesday to secure a second source of water for the community.

Under the contract, the city will purchase treated water from Logan-Todd Regional Water Commission.

The purchase will include the installation of a 20-inch water line that will travel about 20 miles from Guthrie, Ky. into Springfield, likely by way of Highway 41 North, according to Springfield City Manager Paul Nutting.

The board unanimously approved the contract at the Tuesday, Aug. 19 board meeting.

Currently, the Red River is the only source of water for Springfield’s water system. The water is treated at the city’s water plant near the Kentucky state line.

Efforts to seek a second source ramped up in February when Springfield officials were forced to advise residents to conserve water usage after an unknown material prevented the city's water treatment plant from producing clean water that met state and federal guidelines.

“Everything is not always perfect,” Springfield Mayor Billy Paul Carneal. said. “You can go through a series of droughts or an incident like we had in February, where the source was contaminated, and for a little while, there was nothing we could do to straighten it out.”

That problem halted the city's production of water, rendering it unable to replenish its supply for about 12-14 hours.

Springfield water customers use about five million gallons of water per day. The water treatment plant can produce 10 million gallons of clean water daily.

Springfield to pay $2.4 million annually

The contract with Logan-Todd calls for Springfield to commit to purchasing a minimum of two million gallons of treated water daily. That water will come from the Cumberland River, allowing Springfield to cut back on production at the water plant, Nutting said.

Before the new water line is placed, right-of-ways along the highway will first have to be purchased.

Springfield will be responsible for purchasing those right-of-ways in Tennessee with Logan-Todd purchasing the right-of-ways in Kentucky.

Nutting told the board that the price of the right-of-ways would not be included in the contract executed.

The additional water will cost Springfield $2,401,700 annually, he said.

Nutting told the board members that they could potentially decide to upgrade the 20-inch water line to 24-inches, for future growth, which would require an amended contract prior to placing the line.

The larger water line would allow for up to 10 million gallons of water to be brought in from Kentucky per day, as opposed to six million.

Logan-Todd receives its water from the Cumberland River in the Clarksville area and pumps it 15 miles to the treatment plant in Guthrie, according to Carneal.

Carneal said the purchase of the water would prevent the city from having to build a second water treatment plant to receive an additional source of water.

In order to maintain the purification of the water, Carneal said the minimum purchase of treated water is required.

“You can’t just build it and only turn it on one day when you decide you’re in a crisis,” Carneal said. “You have to keep water flowing through it.”

The mayor said in the event the Springfield water plant shuts down, the minimum two million gallons a day could increase if needed.

“This will take our capacity way on up there and will ensure we can accommodate the growth that this town is going.”

Springfield Aldermen Ann Schneider, James Hubbard and Willie Mason said they felt the planned water purchase was necessary for future the future growth of Springfield.

Alderman Bruce Head asked Nutting how the purchase would be affecting water rates for customers, with the additional purchase of water from Logan-Todd accompanied with the reduction of treated water pumped from Springfield.

“The rates will definitely be going up as soon as the project is completed within the next couple of years,” Nutting said. “With 12,250 customers, it would average about $150 to $160 a year per customer.”

The city will incur several million dollars in debt in purchasing the right-of-ways, according to Nutting. But the debt of constructing the lines will be incurred by the Logan-Todd Water Commission.